Happy Birthday, killabeez!

[gwyn]

I hope you have a wonderful birthday. Meeting you has been one of the best things that's ever happened to me in fandom, and I hope the upcoming year is fantastic and gives you everything you want.

***

Question for any of my flist BPAL fans out there. I have been interested for a while in your little fandom (it is! It's a fandom!) but I confess that a lot of the basics around it elude me. A lot of the more poetic and annoyingly obtuse scent descriptions bewilder me -- I have a few scents I have to avoid, and I would actually like to know what's in them, but the writers are very busy being purple and I can't quite tell what I would be getting. I'm finding regular perfumes aren't doing much for me these days, and I like perfume oils better, so I'm quite interested in what they offer, but I can't seem to really figure out what I need to get started. feochadn said she thought there was an LJ or something like that just for n00bs that gives you a rundown, or maybe it was a web page. Anyone know, or want to walk me through it? How do you know what you want to try, or do you just grab whatever and go? How much is an imp, actually? (Measurement numbers are fairly meaningless to me.)

I find the site a little hard to read -- even with the text enlarged, I can't really read it well without leaning toward the screen. I guess they think anyone interested is all young and gothy, but some of us are old and gothy (at least, I was a goth back in the day before they even had a name for it -- really, really old!). We have bad old people eyes. Which is why I probably need a BPAL pal -- sometimes trying to read through that dense text in such a small font makes me give up after a while so I'm not finding out what I need to know.

Comments

[rusty_halo.livejournal.com]

I just got started with BPAL. It is really fun!

I always have to enlarge the text on the page. I don't know what they're thinking with that small font.

I went through the various sections and copied all the ones that sounded interesting into a text file. Then I went through that and picked my top six and ordered imps of them. (Imps are the little sample vials. There's enough to last a couple weeks in one imp, if you use it sparingly.) You can get six for $19.50; the imps explanation page is here. (http://www.blackphoenixalchemylab.com/sample.html) You do have to be careful because they don't offer imps of everything.

Regarding the descriptions; after all the fancy stuff, there's usually a line that actually says what's in it. I usually just skim to that. Also, a better way of figuring out what something smells like is to look at what people are saying in the forum, which is here (http://www.bpal.org/). Hit search (http://www.bpal.org/index.php?act=Search&f=) and scan the page, and you'll find the topic based on the scent you're interested in.

Also, if you know there's particular ingredient you're interested in, you can use the site search to look through all the different descriptions. It's here (http://vanilla.spicybrains.org/index.php). So if you type "vanilla" in there, you'll get all the vanilla-scented ones.

This is what I've figured out so far. I'm still learning, though! (And there's definitely a lot they could do to make it all more user friendly.)

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

Oh, a text page -- that is pure genius. I would never have thought of that. Thank you so much for the links -- I hate being a stoopit newbie, even though I am, so I want to minimize my mistakes the first time through. There are some pages that just baffle me (the somnium fragrances... not a clue there), but I think there are enough with clearly listed fragrances to keep me busy for a really long time. Icould order 90% of the Salon page ones, frankly, and I would probably be happy.

How do you know if one isn't available as an imp? I haven't seen that yet, but there was one in the new page that sounded lovely, but said it was only available in .15 -- I didn't know if that meant no imp, or just no other bottle size.

[rusty_halo.livejournal.com]

How do you know if one isn't available as an imp?

It tells you on the imp page. Some are only available in sets and at the bottom it says which aren't available at all:

Imps are no longer available for the following categories of scents:

Limited Edition
Carnaval Diabolique
Lunacy Blends
Any Twilight Alchemy Lab oils
Any oils offered at Black Phoenix Trading Post

So I just didn't put any of those on my list, because I don't want to pay for a large bottle of something I haven't tried yet. There's enough awesome scents that are available as imps.

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

Durr -- okay, I get it now! I was thinking they would state that individually.

Oh dear. I think I'm going to be in big trouble -- the ones I want the most? Are only in sets of like a gajillion and run $82. I better behave...

[rainkatt.livejournal.com]

Also let me add that if you're stupid (or your eyeballs have exploded from the horrid print), and you order something in an imp that isn't available that way, they're really good about emailing and asking whether you'd like to substitute.

[deejay.livejournal.com]

*waves*

Hiya, hon! I have amassed and traded away close to 600 BPAL scents thus far. Because of the politics (of which I stay well away from, lol!), I don't bother with the BPAL Forum (totally full of panties-twisters) at all. My BPAL-related LJ nick is ladybladethrust (a long, silly story in itself), and I suggest joining bpalmarketplace and sinandsalvation for trading purposes first off. I run bpal_isos (a group for "isos" -- in search ofs -- when you want to find a specific scent), and you're more than welcome to join us, of course. Since you're just starting out, let me know if you intend to swap or buy from someone you don't know and I'll check them out for you (via their feedback).

Re:

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

I thought you would still be cruisin', girl! Thank you for all this -- it's great. I am always afraid of being the resident doofus about things like this, but I'd rather ask now and get the wisdom of my peers than look stupid later!

[voleuse.livejournal.com]

there was an LJ or something like that just for n00bs that gives you a rundown, or maybe it was a web page.

sophia_helix posted an FAQ here (http://sophia-helix.livejournal.com/366892.html). *g*

[feochadn.livejournal.com]

YES! That's it! There, Gwyn, that was the page I was trying to point toward (and couldn't find again).

Thanks!

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

Fabulousness!!! Thank you so much. I'm very impressed someone could translate my incoherent description into an actual link!

[minim_calibre]

I have a fair number of random imps that I'll never use--so if you have any that sound especially interesting, let me know, and I'll check my imp drawer!

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

Oooh, that sounds fantastic. Fenchurche suggested I post a list (though that might be dangerous, as there are dozens of scents I'm interested in and I haven't even looked at every page!) -- and I will happily buy anyone local coffee and pastries to meet up and buy.

[fenchurche.livejournal.com]

I've also got a whole bunch of imps I've never used -- mostly free imps included with other orders, and a few I bought that just didn't work out. So, definitely post a list before you buy, because it would help some of us clear this stuff out a bit!

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

I will do that! I'm heavily leaning to certain categories, I notice, when I can find actual ingredients, but I'm already thinking of at least 50 scents! I have to rein myself in a little here. ;-)

[jidabug.livejournal.com]

Others have already pointed to the forums. That's where I go when I can't find a good description. I have a bunch of imps that didn't work out for me, and I'd be happy to send you any that you might be interested in. I'm all about the enabling. ;^)

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

That is so sweet of you! And it is so good to see you back here in LJ land.

I think this is going to be fun if I can get past my fear of making my first order -- lately, I've found that scents have really had an effect on my state of being and sometimes it can perk me up a little when I'm feeling especially low. OTOH, I don't want to sneeze all over the place!

[jidabug.livejournal.com]

Well, I made my first order back in January...and through the miracle of swaps, eBay, "frimps", and general gluttony every "Lunacy", I've tried 288 scents this year. It might have been more, but I was on hiatus while I was commuting to Canada for work.

I heartily agree about the power of scents to pick you up, calm you down, or put you in any other frame of mind you want. Plus, the collecting aspect is just plain fun. :^)

[superplin.livejournal.com]

Heh, I just presented at a conference talking about BPAL as a fandom, so I totally agree! (To keep up the analogy, I watch the show but don't qualify as a fan. Well, much.)

You've got most of the useful starter information already, so just add me to the list of people willing to send imps. Also, despite my above disclaimer, over the past couple of years I've ammassed a decent collection of bottles, and would be glad to decant for you any of interest. Be sure to list your fave and stay-away notes, too, since I have a fair number of LEs (limited editions) that aren't available anymore, that you might be interested in.

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

I can't believe how generous everyone is about sharing not just the info, but the actual products themselves. I was seriously considering jumping in by ordering an LE that is going off sale in a couple days -- that Purple Passion sounds utterly divine, and if it doesn't work, I can always pass it along, it sounds like! I think that's a huge plus toward getting me interested -- it's not like buying regular perfume in a store; if it doesn't work, I can share it with someone else, and there is so much activity and information around things that it really does feel like i'm just in a new fandom. That approach appeals incredibly well to me; fannishness is just how I know to do things!

[killabeez.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much for the birthday wishes, babe. They mean a lot. Thanks for listening to me natter on this week, too. {{{{{gwyn}}}}}}

Y'all kinda scare me with the BPAL. *g*

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

Thank *you* for nattering with me! Most people would run away as fast as they could when they got a crazy email like mine. ;-)

I know, I can't believe I'm going to be a scary bpal person! But I've noticed a lot lately that I'm very drawn to scents, and that they can really affect my mood, and with things the way they are, I will pretty much take anything I can get to help with my mood. I also find it really appealing that it is fandom -- you guys all have SPN, so I gotta find something!

[smithereen.livejournal.com]

Since you mention the Salons, I have half-imps of a bunch of those that didn't work for me that I can send along to you as a random act of pimpage. (They're regular imp bottles, half-filled.) Not the new batch of Salons, but the old one... I'll take a look and tell you exactly which ones I have when I get home if you're interested.

Also I second the recommendation for the reviews section of the bpal.org forum. That's a GREAT resource, and I definitely use that a lot more than the descriptions on the BPAL website. I also used to keep a spreadsheet of what I'd tried and the listed notes and if it worked or not/what it smelled like so I could figure out which notes are definite no-nos for me. I'm not as obsessive now and don't buy as much so I don't really keep up with it anymore, but doing that was very useful in the beginning to stop me from buying stuff that was guaranteed not to work. *G*

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

Oh, that would be so lovely. It's really amazing to me how generous everyone has been just from one random question! Superplin suggested writing up a list of scents I prefer, and I think I might try to do that today, since it looks like it's going to be slower than normal (thank god). I took a look at the forums yesterday and it was definitely helpful -- hard to judge, sometimes, the way people were describing the scents on *them* since I haven't got a frame of reference yet for a lot of things, but I do know at least some things I like, so I could kind of judge against what people were saying.

The Salon ones seemed to have a lot of the things I love -- frankincense, myrrh, amber, spice notes, those heavy exotic middle easterny things. Flowers, as well, but often the exotic deep scents. I suppose at some point I might learn the language of the fragrances better and know how to express it.

[smithereen.livejournal.com]

BPAL is a pretty generous fandom as a whole, I've found. For a while I was doing a lot of swaps and some people put the cutest little things in the packages from soaps and teas and candy to imps to even handmade jewelry a couple times! And drawings! My icon is a little drawing one swapper drew me, which was just adorable. It's a very nice community even if there's occasional wank just like every fandom. *G*

You're right that it's kind of a crap shoot in the beginning as far as selecting what you want to try because they can be so different on different people, and it takes a while to build that frame of reference and to know what your body is going to do. But that's another thing that makes the community nice; even if your first choices don't work for you, you can swap them and just keep that revolving door going until you hit whatever does work for you.

I had a chance to go through my Salon half imps and I have these: Two Monsters, Lucretia, Bat Woman, Satan and Death with Sin Intervening, Resurrection of the Flesh, The Isle of the Dead, Carceri D'Invenzione, and The Death of Sardanapal. I'd be happy to send you any or all of those. I'm also going to send you some empty imps I have lying around (sometimes people throw those in with swaps or sales too so you can get a little hint of the smell).

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

Oh, those would all be lovely -- seriously, I'm up for trying just about everything.

Is there a preferred email address to send you my info at? And I hope you will tell me how much everything is/was, so i can reimburse you!

[smithereen.livejournal.com]

Yes, send me your address at rcarefoot [at] smithereen [dot] net, and I should be able to get you a package in the mail this week. Don't worry about reimbursement, just think of it as a Christmas present. Or a birthday present. Or like that first free sample of crack. *G*

P.S. I put a couple decants in there too that I thought you might like. (Hell's Belle, Lady of Shallot - the first BPAL scent I fell for, Dorian and Smut - just cause it's called Smut. :)